I'm Still Wondering How the Patriots are Being Run Any Differently Than Before

How it was: 

How it's going:

Like Pimento Loaf sandwiches at Augusta, Strawberries and Creme at Wimbledon, and Mint Juleps at Churchill Downs, nothing goes together like orange juice at the NFL Coaches Meetings for whoever is running the Patriots. Jerod Mayo might seemed bound and determined to reverse course on a lot of his predecessor's methods. But the tradition of meeting with the assembled press in March and the sweet, sweet, nectar of the Florida citrus industry is here to stay. Granted, he's demonstrating a more lax, friendly and convivial approach when it comes to sharing a table with the fourth estate. It's going to take some getting used to that he's not treating them all like fresh fish sitting at his table prison mess hall. But at least we can count on him getting his recommended daily allowance of Vitamin C in. And in these uncertain times of change, I find that comforting. 

With that in mind, I continue to find myself asking, what's different about the way business is being conducted in Foxboro? How is what we've seen in these first couple of months of the Jerod Mayo/Eliot Wolf regime is so different from the way Bill Belichick did things? Or more specifically, what have we seen so far that makes you say, "Aha! That's what we needed! That's what justified firing the most successful person to run a franchise since Red Auerbach!" 

So let's dive into what Mayo had to say and see if we can spot the differences. 

Well for starters, he's making an aesthetic change we'll notice right away:

So that's something, I suppose. Belichick more or less regarded the "C" with the stars under it like it was a "My Child Was Student of the Month" bumper sticker. But as a perennial captain himself, Mayo probably would've liked to have that acknowledged for the world to see. And this is no doubt the first sign of his more player-friendly, respect-for-the-individual approach. And it might yield results. As Napoleon said, "A soldier will fight long and hard for a bit of colored ribbon." 

Though there's been no change whatsoever when it comes to spending on free agents:

And like his predecessor always did, Mayo confirms the Krafts are willing to spend whatever it takes:

In fact, that was a major talking point of the day:

The main difference is that when Mayo doesn't sign any impact players, he feels kinda bad about it:

I honestly don't know what to make of this. On the one hand, the Patriots currently have the most money to spend in the entire league, with over $50 million, according to Over the Cap. So part of me does want an apology. Or at least to know that there's some regret when they miss out on somebody they were targeting:

On some level, it helps to know that the people in charge are feeling the same way those of us in the proletariat are feeling. But on another level, we're accustomed to someone telling us to go fuck our feelings. Not in so many words, but with his silence. I'm used to tough love. It helped make a man out of me. Not some squishy, sensitive ball of emotions who needs his feelings validated. I mean, if Mayo deems it necessary to acknowledge our frustrations, just give us nothing to be frustrated about. In other words, produce results. Go after a Calvin Ridley, but be successful. Or tell us the price got too high and it would've been irresponsible to sign him. To be fair, having a coach talking this honestly and openly might be the most normal thing in the world. But when you're used to the complete opposite approach, it's a lot to process all at once. It's like surfacing too fast from a scuba dive. And could make all the blood vessels in your brain explode like cherry bombs. 

He also sort of tipped his hand about the plans to draft and build around a rookie quarterback:

Finally though, he did pivot back to Belichick's signature way of answering draft questions. That is, in the most non-committal way possible:

So to bottom line all this, aside from a couple of minor, inconsequential changes like being friendly to the press, uniform patches, and being a little more forthcoming with information, I'm not seeing a difference in how the Patriots are being run. And until some obvious change in the way of doing business takes place, it's fair game to ask why the old GM and HC had to get fired in the first place. It certainly can't have been just to have a smile behind that glass of OJ. Stay tuned.